Yet Again, Rumors Are Flying That Lewis Hamilton Could Move To Ferrari, But Would That Be A Good Move?

Stop me if you've heard this one: it's being rumored that Lewis Hamilton could make a move to Ferrari.

The 7-time champion has long flirted with the idea of joining forces with the Scuderia, but it has never panned out.

Now, Sky Sports F1's Simon Lazenby is saying that he thinks that move could happen after this season.

Lazenby was speaking to fellow Sky Sports pundits Naomi Schiff and ex-F1 driver Karun Chandook on the Sky Sports F1 Vodcast when they touched on what the future could hold for Hamilton.

Following the Bahrain Grand Prix, both Hamilton and Mercedes team principal Toto Wolfe were not high on their chances for this season. Worse yet, Hamilton was quoted as saying that he had tried to talk Mercedes into switching up the design concept last season when it became clear that their 2022 car — the W13 — was nowhere near a title contender.

We've only seen one race this season and it's already pretty clear that Mercedes is in some trouble again. Yeah, they might snag an occasional podium, and their new car, the W14, could even win a race (with a little help).

They just won't be winning a championship this season.

Mercedes is so far behind teams like Red Bull and Ferrari, and with Hamilton not getting any younger, it may be time for him to switch teams.

Could Hamilton Wind Up At Aston Martin? (Absolutely Not, But Let's Talk About It Anyway)

The first team that Lazenby, Chandook, and Schiff discussed Hamilton joining was Aston Martin. They're headed in the right direction and have also been rumored to have an interest in bringing Hamilton on board.

“I don’t think that will happen," Chandook said “You’re going to tell Lawrence (Stroll) to sack his son (Lance Stroll)? Good luck with that.”

He's right, and not just because canning Stroll doesn't make sense. Canning Fernando Alonso instead doesn't make any sense.

Plus, there's precedent as far as a Hamilton-Alonso pairing. They were teammates at McLaren in 2007 and it didn't go well/

So no, Hamilton to Ferrari doesn't make sense. In fact, it makes negative sense. It owes sense.

Now, Ferrari?

*Rubs chin in an intrigued fashion*

A Ferrari Move Would Make Sense At This Point In Hamilton's Career

As Lazenby put it, Hamilton wants that record-breaking eighth World Champion. Unfortunately for him, it's becoming increasingly clear that he won't win it with Mercedes if he does at all.

“He’s so desperate for that eighth, that if Ferrari did manage to stay on the coattails and they were the nearest to Red Bull," Lazenby said.

“He’s not put his pen to paper yet on his contract, he’s definitely waiting to see how this year’s car felt. I think the great relationship with the team and Toto will endure but I don’t think you can ever rule out a move to Ferrari for racing drivers because it’s their dream and he’s said it before.”

Carlos Sainz's deal with Ferrari is finished after this season. While he's a capable driver, I'm not convinced he's done enough to keep that seat. Especially if a hungry Lewis Hamilton is on the market.

Signing a deal to wind down his career and have a shot at winning that eighth championship would have to be tantalizing for Hamilton. Plus, a Charles Leclerc/Lewis Hamilton lineup would be something else.

There's no question that Ferrari has a better car — and perhaps more importantly in the long-run car concept — than Mercedes. Still, you can't help but wonder how Hamilton would handle some of the repeated issues we've seen at Ferrari.

One race into the season and reliability is already a major concern. A move to Ferrari could simply cause him more headaches than he's dealing with at Mercedes.

Follow on Twitter: @Matt_Reigle

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Matt is a University of Central Florida graduate and a long-suffering Philadelphia Flyers fan living in Orlando, Florida. He can usually be heard playing guitar, shoe-horning obscure quotes from The Simpsons into conversations, or giving dissertations to captive audiences on why Iron Maiden is the greatest band of all time.